


Keep The Faith, conclusion

by gpadow



Category: Gunsmoke, Matt/Kitty
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-09-20
Updated: 2011-09-20
Packaged: 2017-10-23 21:50:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/255391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gpadow/pseuds/gpadow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>murder by poison</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keep The Faith, conclusion

**Author's Note:**

> This story respectfully features characters and canon from the television series, Gunsmoke, which aired in 1955. They do not belong to me.

#9 Keep The Faith, part II

 

Oct. 9th, 2009 at 11:26 AM

 

Later that night, in Kitty's rooms above the Long Branch.

Matt, having a hard time staying awake, put his half finished snifter of brandy on the big oak table and rubbed his eyes.

"I hate having to wear a sling," the big man mumbled.

Kitty looked up from the mirrored vanity where she was brushing her long, red hair and smiled.  
"I'm kinda tired, Cowboy. Can we turn in for the night?"

"Well, I guess it's too late to get any reply to those telegrams. It might take some time before we know anything more about the Penns."

Matt took off the sling and fumbled with the buttons on his shirt cuffs.  
"Tomorrow I'll ride out to their camp and have a word with the grandfather..(yawn)..see what I can find out."

"Ride!  
Matt, don't be foolish. Less than a week ago you were lying in an alley bleeding all over my new dress," Kitty said as she stood behind him, draping her arms down over his shoulders.

"You sure looked pretty in it. I like you in yellow."

"Green."

Matt reached around to pull Kitty onto his lap, then winced as a sharp pain shot through his arm and shoulder.

Kitty instinctively placed a hand over the bandaged area by his heart.

She gently pulled his head to her, kissing his forehead and running her hands through his hair.

"You smell so nice, Kit," the weary lawman whispered as he buried his face in her breasts.

"I like the way you change the subject, Kitty giggled.  
Come on, let's get some sleep."

 

###

The Penn camp, just outside of Dodge. There are a tent, a covered wagon, and a few pieces of furniture scattered about the site.  
Matt and Timothy are standing next to Doc's buggy, talking.

"You mean it, Marshal?" Timothy's beautiful face smiled up at Matt, and the youngster could hardly contain his joy. "You'll really stay here with Grandpa while I go back to Dodge with Doctor Adams?"

"Doctor's orders, son.  
Doc Adams wanted to look in on your grandpa, and he thought I could use some fresh air.

Miss Kitty will sure be happy to see you. Maybe you two can have lunch at Delmonico's. How's that sound?"

"Oh, thank you, Marshal!" Timothy leaped up, throwing his arms around Matt's shoulders, almost knocking the big man off his feet.

"By golly, son, let's find a seat."

Timothy took Matt's hand and led him to the fire pit where they seated themselves on two of three straight-backed chairs. Matt noticed a Bible and some other books stacked on the third chair. There were a small stack of blank paper sticking out from between the books and a few pencils.

"Looks like your brother has been working on a sermon, Timothy. Does he plan to start a church here or preach near a reservation like your Pa?"

"I wish we could stay here, Marshal. But the Indians can teach us so much, and their medicine is very powerful. So are their sacred laws. My Pa thought if he could convert them he could bring a new religion to the West."

Matt studied the boy's dreamy expression. Kitty was right; Timothy Penn could look and act so much younger than twelve one moment, then so much older than his years the next.

"Marshal, how come you and Miss Kitty aren't married?"

Matt had been waiting for the boy to bring up the subject, but hoped Kitty would be the one to handle it. It occurred to him now that Timothy may ask her the same question and compare their responses. He may even query Doc on their ride back to town.

"I could tell you that you'll understand more about that when you get older, son, but I'll try to explain a little," Matt said, trying to choose his words carefully.

"There are lawmen who have families, Timothy, but for a US Marshal in Ford County, well, this is a mighty big territory, and I'm called away an awful lot. It just wouldn't be fair for me to ask Kitty to give up, well, her freedom.  
I know I'm not explaining this very well, but it would be too selfish for me to ask that of her."

Matt let the words sink in a moment, and then added, "And there are very bad men who would want to hurt any family I might have, just to get back at me.

They can do.."  
Matt decided to let it go at that.

Timothy closed his eyes and said "deeds violent and bloody."

A chill went down Matt's spine as he stared at the boy sitting next to him.

 

###

"You think the lad knows what his brother has done and blocked it out, Matt?"

"I don't know, Doc. Are you sure the old man said Aaron had potions?"

"Got them from his father who got them from the Indians. The old man called them justice potions, Matt."

"I'm ready!"  
Timothy ran up to the two men and held out a small book tied with a ribbon. "Do you think she'll like it?" he smiled up at them.

Doc read "Sonnets by William Shakespeare" and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Kitty will love it. You couldn't bring her a better gift.

I'll be back for you in a couple of hours, Matt."

"Bye, Marshal!"

Matt watched as Doc's buggy disappeared over the rise then turned toward the wagon and the strange stare of the elder Penn. For the second time he felt a chill down his spine.

 

###

Doc and Timothy walked from the stables hand in hand. The boy was practically skipping.

"Does Miss Kitty live with the Marshal, Doctor Adams?"

"Why no, she lives at the Long Branch."

"But that's a saloon. They're evil, Doc. Sinful places. She couldn't live there."

"Timothy, didn't you know Miss Kitty owns the Long Branch? She is a very successful businesswoman. We're real proud of her," Doc explained as they came to a stop in front of the saloon.

Doc held a batwing door open and placed his hand on the boy's back to coax him inside. He guided the youngster over to the bar where Sam was busy polishing glasses.

"Hi, Doc. Don't tell me - this must be Timothy. How about a sarsaparilla, young man?"

The boy looked at the friendly barkeep and simply said "OK," and then turned to Doc and asked,"Is that sinful?"

"Sarsaparilla is not like whiskey if that's what you mean, Timothy," Doc answered with a smile. He took the drink from Sam and said "Let's go over to a table in the back. We'll find Kitty and tell her you're here. After you visit and have lunch, I'll take you back to camp."

Doc went back to the bar and talked to Sam before leaving. Timothy looked around the saloon. Some of the mid-day patrons he recognized. They were drinking and playing cards or talking quietly. He started to relax, removed his hat, and even took a sip of his sarsaparilla. It was cool and sweet.

"Well, hello, handsome."  
Timothy looked up at the painted face of one of Kitty's working girls as she reached over and rubbed her hand through his blond hair. She wore a lot of perfume, but it couldn't cover the stale smell of alcohol and smoke. "Buy a girl a drink? My name's Pearl."

"Thanks, Sam."  
Timothy recognized Kitty's voice and stood up.

As Kitty walked toward him, a drunken cowboy draped his arms around her and roughly kissed her.  
Kitty pushed him away with, "you've had enough, Slim."

"Aw, Kitty, today's my day off - let's have us a little fun!"

Kitty held him off and motioned to Pearl to lead the man to another table where he fell into a chair, and Pearl fell into his lap. They were laughing and kissing as Pearl motioned to Sam to bring over drinks.

Kitty pulled her shawl around her shoulders and gave Timothy an awkward smile. "I'm hungry. How about that lunch at Delmonico's?"

As the two walked quietly through the saloon, Slim suddenly yelled out, "Hey, Kitty! You steppin' out on the Marshal, are ya?"

Slim and Pearl laughed as Kitty and Timothy exited the Long Branch.  
They stopped on the boardwalk where the boy looked back at the saloon and then looked up at Kitty. His face wore a sad expression.

"Don't look at me like that, Kitty said quietly. You're much too young to understand."

Timothy put his head down and felt for the book he placed in his pocket as they walked on in silence.

 

###

Carry Penn slipped off her old paint and untied the lunch pail. She placed the palm of her hand over her eyes and squinted.

Slim, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, stood smiling down at her.  
"Who are you looking for, Sweetheart?"

"You know my husband, Aaron? I've brought his lunch," Carry said to the man without looking his way. She had once before experienced his unwanted attentions and didn't wish a repeat performance.

"Penn is in the pen where he belongs. Name sure is fittin'. What's your name, first name that is - I bet it's a pretty one. Pretty enough to go with that shiny black hair of yours and those big brown eyes."

Slim leaned close and put his arm around her, holding her shoulder in a strong grip.

"Let me go!"

"Carry? Aaron Penn walked toward them, wiping his hands on a towel. Is everything all right here?"

"Carry. Now ain't that pretty. Just like you, honey." Slim held tight to the young woman and rubbed his stubbly face against her cheek as she struggled to pull away.

"Stop it!" Carry swung the lunch pail up in an effort to hit the man and looked pleadingly at her husband.

Slim looked at the Reverend, too, as if in a dare. He grabbed the lunch pail from Carry's hand and tossed it at Aaron Penn. "Here ya go, sonny. You run off and enjoy your lunch while the Mrs. and I get acquainted."

Some of the men had stood by watching the young woman try to fight off the ever more aggressive advances, when one man stepped out and shouted, "That's enough, Slim! Get back to work!"  
He turned to the others and said, "The rest of you mind your own business."

The man started to walk toward Carry, and then stopped to frown at the cleric who had not moved or made an attempt to help his wife.  
"Reverend, you best learn how to fight your own battles if you're gonna stay around Dodge City."

Carry stumbled to her husband and looked up at him. She needed to have him hold her, but he simply reached down to pick up the lunch pail and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I have to go back to work now."  
As Carry turned to leave, she saw Timothy staring at them. Her husband saw him, too.

"How long have you been standing there, Timothy? the Reverend asked. You should be back at camp looking after Grandpa."

"I was coming to fetch the Doc, Timothy said in a flat voice. There's something wrong with Grandpa."

 

###

"Deeds wanton and impure?"  
"How many other deeds can there be? It's like the Ten Commandments or something, Kitty groused.

The redhead released her reading glasses, and they dropped down from a thin chain around her neck. Matt stared at where they came to rest.

Kitty broke his spell by handing the pages back to him. She smiled knowingly and said, "Well, I guess that beats violent and bloody."

Matt grinned at her and then turned serious. "Quite a letter, isn't it, Kitty?"

"Yes, it is. Gives me the creeps, Matt.

Another round please, Sam. And bring one for Doc, too."

Matt looked around, and then moments later watched the physician enter the saloon. He gave Kitty a wide-eyed look.

"It's a gift," she said.

"By thunder, I could use that. Thank you, Kitty."

Doc placed his medical bag and hat on an empty chair and wearily took a seat beside his friends.

"Bring any new babies into the world, Doctor? Or maybe a new calf or two," Matt said as he winked at Kitty, and she smiled back.

"For your information, I just got back from a burial." Doc rubbed his hand over his mustache and then took a sip of whiskey.

"Who died, Doc?" Kitty asked.

"Old man Penn, that's who. And before you ask, I think it was natural causes."

"He seemed pretty poorly when we were out there. Did he say anything, Doc, or was he already gone when you got there?" Matt asked.

"He was in a coma, Matt. He just lasted a few hours.  
I'll tell you, there's something strange about that family."

"What do you mean, Doc?" Kitty asked.

Before he could answer, Harvey Wilks came in and hurried to their table. "I thought that was your buggy out front, Doc. Can you come out to the bunkhouse down by the cattle pens?"

"What's the problem, Harv?"

"Looks like Slim done died in his sleep, Doc."

 

###

Kitty was putting the night's cash into the safe in her office when Matt came in and placed his Stetson on a whiskey crate.  
Without a word, Kitty moved to the desk and poured two glasses of her best whiskey.  
Matt had his head down and was running his hand over the back of his head. They each sipped their drink without speaking.  
Kitty went back to the safe to finish putting away the cash and ledgers. She knew her man well enough to know he needed to talk but could be very contained when it came to expressing himself.

"Are you almost done there, Kitty?"

"Yes, all finished. Want to go up?"

"Sure. I guess it's too chilly to go out there, though."

Kitty knew he meant their private roof deck.  
"We can take a blanket," she said as she locked the roll-top desk and stood by Matt, leaning her head against his chest for a moment before turning off the lamp.  
He picked up his Stetson and held open the door for his lady.

"Kitty?"

She turned and they met in a long, sweet, wet kiss.

 

###

Kitty's rooms, 3 am.

Matt is sitting up in bed with several pillows behind him. Kitty is wearing the light blue shirt of Matt's she had long ago claimed as her own. She is sitting at the oak table in the center of the room sipping a brandy.

"I've seen this writing, well, printing, before, Matt," Kitty said as she studied the note that read deeds wanton and impure.  
"Sure, it's like the first two notes," Matt replied.

"I mean this," Kitty said as she handed him a book of Shakespearean sonnets. Matt opened the cover and read the neatly printed inscription: For Kitty Russell - Be blessed - Love from Timothy Penn.  
"He showed this to us when Doc brought him to town.  
He was so excited to give you this gift, Kitty."

"But not when he gave it to me, Matt. He just said 'here' and hardly looked me in the eye. I'm afraid Timothy thinks of me as 'wanton and impure' now.

What happened to Slim, Matt?" Kitty finally had to ask.

She knew if she returned to bed they would return to making love and Matt would leave in the morning before telling her about the murder.

"He didn't show up for his shift, and when Harvey was sent to check on him, he thought he was sleeping off a drunk.

Earlier, Slim was taunting Penn and coming on to his wife, Carry. There were a lot of witnesses. They said the foreman had to break it up because the Reverend didn't make a move to protect the girl."

"Matt, was Timothy there?"  
"I don't know, Kitty. That was about the time he came to find Doc, so it is possible he went there to find Aaron to tell him about their grandfather.  
Of course that doesn't mean he ever saw Slim."

"But he did see him once before," Kitty said.

"When?"

"When he was drunk and he grabbed me in the Long Branch and kissed me."

After a long silence, Matt finally said what had been on his mind.

"What if it is him, Kitty? How do I handle it if it's the boy?  
Aaron Penn is barely a man, but Timothy.."

"I know, Matt. I hate to think it could be possible, but we have to know.  
Matt, what can you do? Whether it's one or both, you have no real proof, do you?"

"I may have to set a trap to get that, Kitty."

 

###

"Timothy, why haven't you come by to see me?" Kitty asked.

The boy was standing by the counter in the general store, having just made a penny-candy purchase.

Kitty had seen him helping ladies with their packages, and she had to smile, thinking that he would do well in tips with that beautiful, smiling face of his.

But he was not smiling now. Timothy Penn gave her a cold stare and replied, "Just been real busy."

"I'll check on that order for you, Miss Kitty, Jonus said, and then added, Carry, I'll be in the back for a few minutes."

"OK, Mr. Jonus." Carry was obviously avoiding eye contact with Kitty and looked at the front door, hoping a new customer would come in needing her attention.

"I'm sorry about your grandfather, Carry. Doc told me the news," Kitty said.

"Thank you. It was a blessing he was taken to God. His suffering is over."

"Well, I guess. I mean if one really believes in all that superstition.  
But I guess you have to, being a preacher's wife."

"But it can't be all that bad, can it?" Kitty added with a wink.

"I mean Aaron is a very good looking boy, after all.  
I know my girls at the Long Branch wouldn't mind if he wanted to preach to them!"

Kitty glanced at Timothy, but the boy had turned his back to her. She forced a laugh and said, "Next time Matt's away, I'll have to pay Aaron a visit for one of those cozy little prayer meetings."

Jonus reappeared and said, "It just came in, Miss Kitty. There's another package still at the freight office. Shall I have them sent over?"

"That'll be fine, Mr. Jonus. Whenever they're ready.  
Oh, and could I have a jar of that black current jam, too. Just put it on my account."

 

###

"Well, hello, young fella. Ma'am."  
Sam gave a warm smile to Timothy and Carry Penn.  
"I'll take that for you."

"No. We have to bring them to Miss Kitty," Timothy said.

His package was quite large and he struggled to hold it; but Sam figured he would get a nice tip from Kitty and said, "She's upstairs if you think you can manage, son."

Carry was holding another package and a hat box. "We'll be fine. Thank you."

Sam smiled as they headed up stairs. The barkeep went to the door of the office and said, "They just came in, Marshal. It was young Timothy and Mrs. Penn."

"Thanks, Sam. If Aaron Penn shows up, send him upstairs, too."

A puzzled Sam watched Matt Dillon walk toward the back stairs.

"Won't you have a bite to eat while I try this on?" Kitty asked. She went behind a screen to change.

Carry and Timothy looked around the room at the intimate women's clothing that was lying in plain sight and the crystal decanters of liquor. They both moved to where a loaf of bread and some cold cuts were spread out on the table, as well as a half-filled glass of wine.

Kitty peered over the screen, but the two had their backs to her.

"Did you bring that jam I ordered?"

Carry seemed startled, but quickly replied, "Yes, Miss Kitty, it's right here."

"Good, Kitty said. It's delicious. Try some."

"Well, how do I look?" The redhead laughed as she whirled out from behind the screen in a beautiful satin dress.

Just then, her door opened, and Aaron Penn ran into the room.  
"Don't! This has to stop!"

Timothy rushed at Kitty and pulled something from his pocket, raising it up as if to stab her. Aaron brought his fist down hard on the boy's back, and he fell face down onto the carpet.

The preacher then turned to his wife and yelled, "You did this with your Indian ways!"

"Hold it right there!"

Kitty turned in the direction of Matt's voice and saw him holding a gun on Aaron Penn.

"Matt! It's Carry!" Kitty shouted.

But the young woman had already grabbed the long knife from the table and plunged it into her husband.

Kitty reached in her vanity drawer, pulled out a derringer, and fired it at Carry Penn.

The woman stopped for a moment; then, with a wild look in her eyes, took a step toward Kitty with the knife held high.

Matt's bullet sent her back, as she dropped the knife and crumpled over the body of Reverend Penn.

Kitty knelt down by Timothy. She turned him over and cradled his head in her lap while Matt went to check the bodies of Aaron and Carry Penn.

Just then Festus came running into the room, gun drawn, followed by Sam and Doc. The three men stopped in their tracks and looked around at the terrible scene.

"They're dead, Doc." Matt said.

Then he turned to Kitty. "How about the boy?"

Kitty didn't answer, and Doc went over to her to check Timothy's eyes and pulse. He looked back at Matt and shook his head.

Matt noticed a thin stream of blood that ran down the boy's neck. In his hand were the broken remains of a glass vile.

Matt Dillon took in a deep breath. He wanted to run to Kitty and hold her in his arms. He watched her take a piece of paper from Timothy's pocket as he went over to help her stand up.

Holding Kitty close, Matt took her out on the landing, and then he returned to the doorway.  
In his lawman's voice he said, "Sam, Kitty will be staying at the Dodge House tonight. Can you make sure this room is cleaned up after.."

He looked at Festus, who said, "Don't you worry, Matthew, I'll see ta this here business with ol' Percy. You jest take care of Miz Kitty."

Doc moved past Matt and said, "A violent and bloody end for sure.  
I'll go fetch something to help Kitty sleep and meet you over at the Dodge House, Matt."

Matt moved next to Kitty who was leaning against the post and railing. A few Long Branch customers were staring up at the balcony wondering what had happened. He gently put his arm around her.

"I'm so sorry, Kitty," he whispered. "I never thought it would happen like this. I never should have brought you into this."

Kitty looked up at him with tears in her eyes.  
"He had this for me," she said.

Matt took the note from her hand.  
Neatly printed were the words deeds wanton and impure.

The End


End file.
